Calls for immediate halt to Scottish mountain hare cull to protect species

Mass killing of Scotland’s native mountain hares should be banned immediately, according to campaigners.
A fall in mountain hare numbers has seen the animal's status now classed as unfavourableA fall in mountain hare numbers has seen the animal's status now classed as unfavourable
A fall in mountain hare numbers has seen the animal's status now classed as unfavourable

The call comes on the back of a new EU report, which has seen the survival prospects for the species downgraded from ‘favourable’ to ‘unfavourable’.

New data in the Article 17 report, which assesses the state of Scottish protected species and habitats, shows mountain hare populations have suffered major declines.

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Some areas have lost up to 90 per cent of the animals that once roamed there.

Conservationists believe hunting and game management are key drivers of the falling numbers, with increasing agriculture and habitat loss also having an impact.

The mountain hare is native to the Scottish Highlands and is the UK’s only indigenous hare species.

Currently it is protected during a five-month closed season but may be legally controlled the rest of the time.

Figures from the Scottish Government show up to 37,000 are being killed on Scottish sporting estates each year.

Landowners say culls protect grouse from tick-borne disease and stop over-grazing.

Duncan Orr-Ewing, head of species and land management at RSPB Scotland, said: “We have been extremely concerned about the state of our mountain hare populations for many years.

“In the last 12 months new, robust evidence has shown that populations have declined precipitously, chiefly in areas managed for driven grouse shooting.

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“This reclassification to unfavourable status demands urgent action.”

Government nature advisers Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) called for a voluntary restraint of large-scale mountain hare culls on grouse moors as far back as 2014, but the practice has continued.

Last year the agency warned ministers it may have to report the mountain hare population was in “unfavourable status” to the European Commission.

Mr Orr-Ewing continued: “The recognition from the Scottish Government’s own advisers that the mountain hare population is now unfavourable means that increased protection of this iconic species is needed. Self-regulation and claimed voluntary restraint from culling by the industry has been nothing short of a pitiful failure.

But the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) has disputed the claims that grouse estates were behind the losses and said the reverse could be true.

The GWCT said surveys by its members, carried out under SNH guidance, found “robust” numbers close to sites reported to have none. Meanwhile, populations on managed grouse moors “can be up to 35 times higher than in areas where grouse are not shot”.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We have commissioned a report on aspects of grouse moor management, including mountain hare culling, from an independent group led by Professor Alan Werritty.

"We expect this report in the next few weeks and we will consider any recommended actions, alongside all other evidence, in deciding whether further regulation is required.”

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